# Linea Sketch vs Charcoal

The clearest difference is rating: Charcoal at 4.5 against Linea Sketch's 3.7. Charcoal also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 3) and review sentiment (77% vs 62%). Linea Sketch's advantage is ratings volume (803 vs 144). On price, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Linea Sketch sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Charcoal asks for nothing beyond the download.

Charcoal holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 3.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Linea Sketch has 803 ratings behind it against 144, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 62% of Linea Sketch's written reviews are positive against 77% of Charcoal's.

Linea Sketch ships an update every 3 months, Charcoal every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on November 11, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Linea Sketch | Charcoal |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [3.7 (803 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/linea-sketch/id1094770251/reviews) | **[4.5 (144 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/charcoal/id1490279484/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **803** | 144 |
| Positive reviews | 62.2% of reviews | **76.8% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | **Every 2 months** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | **Free** |
| Size | 133 MB | 29 MB |
| Requires iOS | 18.0 | **15.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Vision Pro** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [The Iconfactory](https://appshunter.io/developer/281795483) | [Lars Augustin](https://appshunter.io/developer/1806278075) |

## What reviewers say

### Linea Sketch

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/linea-sketch/id1094770251)

This app provides a powerful yet intuitive drawing and note-taking experience. Its minimalist interface keeps the focus on your creations, offering features like intelligent shape creation, precise layer management, and artistic brushes. Record your process with time-lapse and utilize various grids and templates for diverse projects.

**Highlights:** Minimalist UI, Intelligent shape creation (ZipShapes), Elegant layer management, Artistic watercolor brush, Time-lapse recording, Grids and templates, Annotation tools

**Features:** Family Sharing

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Linea Monthly Subscription | $1.99 | per month |
| Linea Yearly Subscription | $19.99 | per year |
| Linea Full Purchase | $59.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Simple and intuitive interface
- 👍 Great for sketching and note-taking
- 💡 Clever color picker
- 🚀 Responsive with Apple Pencil
- 👍 Layers and blending tools

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional crashes and freezes
- 🐛 Inconsistent behavior with fill tool
- 🐛 Difficulty controlling pencil/marker thickness
- 💡 Limited brush and tool options
- 💡 Lack of canvas resizing and expansion

**Reported bugs**

- Drawings disappearing or not saving properly
- Layers and colors not behaving as expected
- Sudden crashes when switching tools or actions
- Slow performance and loading issues

**Requested features**

- Add smudge/blending tool
- Implement watercolor brush
- Include text tool and annotation options
- Support for higher resolution canvases
- Introduce animation and video features


### Charcoal

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/charcoal/id1490279484)

This app offers a simple yet powerful sketching experience with rich tools and beautiful color palettes. Easily create and export your artwork for use in other graphics programs. It supports modern iOS features like multiple windows and dark mode for enhanced productivity.

**Highlights:** Simple sketching interface, Rich drawing tools, Beautiful color palettes, Export sketches, Multiple window support, Dark mode

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Simple and intuitive
- 👍 Great for quick sketching
- 🎨 Aesthetically pleasing design
- 💰 Free with no ads

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🎨 Limited color palette
- 🎨 Lack of customization options
- 🎨 Missing advanced drawing tools
- 🐛 Occasional bugs and crashes

**Reported bugs**

- Saved sketches lose quality
- Palette colors change unexpectedly
- Freezing when opening color palette

**Requested features**

- Ability to change brush/pen size
- Layers and blending tools
- Color wheel and custom color selection
- Import/export options


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Linea Sketch free?

Linea Sketch is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Charcoal free?

Charcoal is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Linea Sketch or Charcoal?

Charcoal is rated higher. Linea Sketch averages 3.7 out of 5 from 803 ratings, while Charcoal averages 4.5 from 144 ratings.

### Do Linea Sketch or Charcoal have ads?

Neither Linea Sketch nor Charcoal shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Linea Sketch or Charcoal?

Linea Sketch ships an update every 3 months, and Charcoal every 2 months. Most recently, Linea Sketch was updated on November 11, 2026 and Charcoal on November 3, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*